Picked up my 2003 996TT exactly 1 year ago today. My first Porsche. Here is a quick recap of my year of ownership. (and some obligatory photos)

Bought with 61k miles on it. I wanted a car to drive, not a show car. Wanted one that has already gone thru the normal issue resolution and with some mods. I would not have pulled the trigger on +$10-$20k of mods after purchase.
I eventually found her from an enthusiast who was very familiar with the model and had done similar mods to what I would have picked (vs Frankenstein mods). Settled on $53,500 for it (+$3,500 more than I wanted to spend, he came down $1,500).

Drove it home 950 miles with a grin on my face the whole way. No issues.
After 1 year of ownership and 7k miles, I have spent $9,200 on maintenance/mods (about 50/50 split). No major issues - just what I would consider refresh work.
Maintenance =
- Went thru 2 sets of rear tires, 1 set of fronts.
- New front brakes
- Had to replace the power steering pump (previous owners shop broke the factory seal when doing the GT2 conversion - caused a slow leak. Had to replace the whole pump.)
- Had a boost leak, common at this age - most of the cost was labor to replace hoses, rebuild diverter valves, replace N75, bad temperature sensor.
- New coilpacks and sparks
- 2 oil changes
- new battery
- new fuel filter

Mods =
- Welded coolant hoses (the ones that were reachable without pulling engine)
- Silicone hoses
- New audio headunit
- refinished all 4 wheels
- replaced front splitter (was beat up)
- repaired and resprayed rear wing (was in poor shape and had a bad paint job)
- professionally fixed some existing dings, previous owner DIY touchups
- alignment
- tint

So with that - I'm just about all modded out and up to date with all maintenance. Not much else I want to do to it except enjoy it.

Let me cover what I found to be the highlights after 1 year of ownership. I was never a lifelong Porsche fan, I knew about them but never thought I could afford one. I was on the outside looking in.

After spending a year with it, I am fully impressed with the car and the brand. There is a long and rich history surrounding Porsche, as well as some amazing stories that make you really appreciate their philosophy and their ownership experience. The thoughts of overpriced and snobby do not even enter my mind anymore (well maybe for a new one!).


There are so many little things that people may not notice at a glance. Once you get beyond ‘brand impression’, you really have an amazing car. The little things that standout for me and surprised me more than I would have thought are:
- Driving position
- Superb visibility
- The full driving experience (sound, feel, responsiveness, functionality), many times I drive with no radio on just to enjoy the sensations.
- Sharp suspension and handling
- The car is built like a bank vault – incredibly solid
- The pedal setup is excellent out of the box for heel/toe shifting
- The ability to point and shoot – the car will do almost whatever you will it to do…this is really amazing when you are driving. If you want to pass someone but only have a small gap – you just do it (but this leads to the dick factor and getting too aggressive for your own britches).
- I also find myself admiring it from an artistic point of view (never done that before!). Some people don’t appreciate the look of the 911 – that is fine, I have always liked it.

Looking forward to many more miles in it.

Obligatory photos:

 

Sounds like a keeper. I'm just a few months over a year of ownership as well. They really are great cars.

 

HB2U! Glad that it's going so well.

 

Love stories like these and here's to many more years to come

 

Nice looking car, looks similar to this one at Atlanta Motor Speedway last weekend for the Peachstate PCA Spring Autocross

PM me with your email address and I will send you 10-12 good High-res shots of you car via DROPBOX.

 

Haha! Thanks windboat. That would be great - I saw people taking pics, but did not know how I could get a hold of them after the event. PM on its way.

 

Nice looking car. I'm looking to buy soon. Thanks for the info on your year one costs.

 

Beautiful car!!